Warner Bros. is gloating that, with five films so far grossing $4.47 billion to date all over the world, Harry Potter is the biggest movie franchise ever, bigger than the six Star Wars films or even the 22 James Bond films. A daunting achievement, to be sure, but it always irks me that box office boasts like this one are never corrected to adjust for inflation or actual number of tickets purchased. Give me those figures, and then I’ll be impressed.
By the way, if you were to assess a franchise based on its overall impact — on the box office, on other filmmakers, on the imaginations of viewers around the world — would it be one of these three or something else? Lord of the Rings? Star Trek? Superman? Go with your gut, PopWatchers.
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Without a doubt it has to be Star Wars. Between the vast merchandising and impact it had on music, TV, and even had star trek come out with a movie.
I’d go with Star Wars, despite Episodes I-III, just because it was so influential. I’m not sure if I like Star Wars, Star Trek, or The Lord of the Rings better, but Star Wars definitely gets my vote for “biggest” series.
PS: In light of this news, can’t somebody at EW do the math and figure out what the adjusted grosses are for all of these big series? There are enough series that it could be a pretty big article, including Superman, Batman, Star Wars, Star Trek, The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, etc. I don’t know if serials and whatnot from the 40s and 50s count, but Nick & Nora movies come to mind.
Back probably 17 years ago, EW did a cover story called the real most watched movie of all time. or biggest movie star or something to that evvect. Considering that back then tickets were 5.50 and now they are 10, I would love to see an update of that. Also it seems that I recall the Indiana Jones franchise being number 1 all those years ago
It has to be Star Wars, and I’m not a big fan. But that series basically ushered in the era of the ‘blockbuster’ ‘popcorn flick’ whatever you want to call it.
Why does everyone insist on regarding only the past 25 years or so when it comes to questions like this? According to Box Office Mojo, the biggest movie of all time, when adjusted for inflation, is still Gone with the Wind:
http://www.boxofficemojo.com/alltime/adjusted.htm
Granted, that’s just one movie and not a franchise. BUT — although its presence in pop culture awareness has waned in recent years, I’d still say its impact, so far, has arguably far outlasted anything else to date, franchise or not. (Not enough time has passed for anything else to exceed its presence, really.)
Star Wars – beyond a doubt. It would be even more of a shoe-in if Episodes 1-3 never existed, but the original trilogy changed the art and business of film and had a profound cultural impact on an entire generation. Those original 3 movies are also all in the top 20 for box-office gross adjusted for inflation (SW is #2).
For cultural impact, grosses and longevity all considered, I’s say the James Bond films are #2. LOTR would be in my top 3 as well, with Indiana Jones as the alternate.
I can’t get behind some other big money making series as much, such as POTC, Shrek, Jurassic Park, Spiderman etc. They have all made amazing $$$, but I don’t think they would make $$$ in the theaters if they were re-released, the way some of the others could.
I also think some of those older series that ran 20+ movies would gross rather high, adjusted for inflation, but may not compete as well as you think, as they were not distributed globally the way some of the modern films were.
Even though I’ve never watched them, even I know the impact Star Wars has had
No one’s mentioned James Bond. You have to contend with 007 in this conversation.
Texas Chainsaw Massacre, pretty much the template for all the slasher movie franchises that followed. One decent movie followed by 4+ crappy sequels and the inevitable remake.
Star Trek has had the hugest impact on our world. From helping to inspire the Space Race, to Mobile Phones (Star Tak), to tricorders and medical scanning devices….Star trek has inspired scientists and poets alike to help form the word we live in now.
Not to mention the social implications the Orignal series had in its day, first interacial kiss, the peace movement, etc….anywehere in the world you can say beam me up scotty and people know what you are refering to.
Without a doubt Star Wars. The Harry Potter movie franchise largely capitalized on a fan base linked to the books. The Star Wars franchise has had so much impact: big budget special effects, merchandising, etc.
I think the Matrix changed the way a lot of people look at action and effects. M2 and M3 weren’t as strong, but, still, the effects did blow everyone away
Star Wars, no doubt. There are three important criteria for determining what counts as actually important. 1. How does it stand up over time? Does it still resonate years later with a whole new audience? 2. Tickets sold count more than money, because the more repeat viewers you have, the more likely that it’ll have a lasting fanbase instead of just a bunch of one time watchers. 3. The roots of the movie also play a HUGE part. Harry Potter had a built in marketing machine behind it. The fanbase for the movies…most of those people still prefer the books. Star Wars, as flawed as it was (and as flawed as the second trifecta is), grew out of NO fanbase and has maintained that fanbase oh so many years later. Plus it launched a whole new type of movie.
As much as I love Star Trek (well, the original, Next Gen and DS9 anyway), it’s not those films. Half of them have been lousy, and their box office has never matched Star Wars or Potter. Trek’s impact has come from the television shows. Harry Potter’s great, but its true impact has come from the books and not the movies. And it sure isn’t Superman either! One decent film (the 1978 one), and the rest have been dreadful! Superman has yet to be done properly on the big screen.
Star Wars changed the film industry (for better or worse), and its cultural impact cannot be denied. Even those lousy prequels can’t take away from the power of the original trilogy. Lord of the Rings has sort of become the “new” Star Wars, and the longevity of the books is obvious. But truly, Star Wars has to be the choice for the biggest, most influential film franchise ever.
You guys are right. It’s absolutely Star Wars.
Though Lord of the Rings has the most recent success (and more Oscars), Star Wars continues to be a major player in TV, online, toys, Halloween costumes, not to mention it’s many contributions to the pop culture canon and lexicon (lightsabers, the Force, etc.) Star Wars is so powerful that not even the exceedingly lame newer films can really tarnish their reputation and in fact made most of us (or at least me) how great and iconic the originals were.
I’ll also throw out some love for James Bond. A film franchise that’s steadily lasted for 45 years(!) is nothing to be ignored.
Hands down it’s James Bond. They’ve had 6 actors play the role in the EON series, 20 films, and inspired the 1960’s spy culture. It’s still around even with the Soviets gone (as is James Bond), and movies inspired by Bond have been popular ever since.
As for #’s, I’d rather go by the # of people who saw the film than how much money it made. By that standard, Thunderball (which was seen by 66 Million people in movie theaters) is one of the most successful movies of all time.
I know plenty of people who still know nothing about Harry Potter. I’ve never met a person who’d never heard of James Bond, even if they’ve never seen one of his movies.
I’ve heard theme songs from Bond movies in Tokyo coffee shops 30 years after the movie was released, his soundtracks sampled in modern music
and his movies copied and parodied even until the modern era (ie, Austin Powers). That’s what I’d call pretty darned successful.
as far as money goes: Star Wars wins hands down and has mastered the art of merchandizing… i wouldnt say that Star Wars started the blockbuster (that was Jaws) or call it a success in terms of consistency and craft… that has to go to Lord of the Rings, the most successful trilogy of all time. Usually with trilogies, the 3rd is the worst: Return of the Jedi, Matrix Revolutions, Godfather 3 and sometimes they get worse after 3: Superman 4, Batman and Robin… Lord of the Rings got better as the series went on and juggled a large cast perfectly and was masterfully done with visual effects that put Star Wars Episodes 1-3 to shame… but it wasnt ALL about special effects and fighting scenes… it was about full-bodied characters… something George Lucas has no idea of.
As much as it pains me because I think the movies suck, I’m going to have to agree with Star Wars. In addition to the money, it’s probably had more impact on movies that followed than any other franchise, if only because it led Lucas to create ILM.
Ep Sato, who do you know that doesn’t know anything about Harry Potter? Do they live alone without electricity? How is that possible?
I’d say Star Wars then James Bond
Mr. Susman,
You’re an entertainment reporter. Can’t you look up the adjusted gross incomes yourself and then report them to us?
Overall impact? Star Wars, beyond any shadow of a doubt. The original films launched a generation of imitations, imaginations, and creative careers, and their impact is still being felt. Put it this way – a lot happened when I was six years old that I don’t remember (a lot has happened SINCE I was 6 that I don’t remember), but I sure remember going into that movie theater in Sherman, TX, in the summer of 1977, and watching the Imperial Star Destroyer blast its was onscreen over my head.
Star Wars. Its impact on global culture, the existence of a particular global culture, on blockbuster moviemaking, on presenting certain themes as universal — I don’t think there’s much contest. The James Bond films are saddled with being relics of a legacy receding ever more into the past — Britain as a major world power. The LOTR trilogy is probably the most artistically accomplished frachise, but it caps a trend, it didn’t create one (not a successful one anyway — none of the other sword-and-costume epics that followed worked out very well.) Harry Potter movies have just not been all that good; there’s Azkaban, there’s Phoenix, and then the others are rather on the dreadful side.
It’s obviously going to be James Bond. They have been making 007 movies since the 60’s, and they haven’t stopped yet. Star Wars? They are done, unless Goerge Lucas wants to pull another trilogy out of his ass….
Bond! Casino Royale proved that after over 45 years James Bond still appeals to a mass audience. Harry Potter has been around for about 8 (I know the books have been around for a bit longer but the release of the Goblet of Fire is what started the mass hysteria and shortly after that the first film was released. As for Star Wars the last three films pretty much un-did any relivence the first three had. Lord of the Rings was a triliogy and is done (it remains to be seen if The Hobbit gets made)
it’s an age gap thing, i was not around for Star Wars, so of course to my version of the American Culture, thats something old people liked a lot but It never got me. Every generation has it’s own… for my money, I love THE LORD OF THE RINGS! it was the very first long epic i was exposed to that changed the way i view film making… it raised my expectations on what I want in a story, and it was the first movie that got an auidible gasp out of me. But i still put Star Wars in the oldies but goodies section.
It has to be Star Wars, although I’d put Bond right up there near the top (followed by LOTR and Harry Potter). One comment: we all know the Star Wars prequels don’t hold a candle to the original trilogy, but Episode III was terrific (except for some typically stale George Lucas dialogue). Stop lumping it into the first two when describing how horrible the prequels are.
10 Films, 6 Television Series, a massive live of subsidiary products including a huge line of novels, a growing and improving fan film base, and a another feature film in the works is a credit that can go only to Star Trek. Nothing else comes even close to producing the level of content for such an extended period of time that continues to grow.
I’m with Shaun. Star Trek’s weakest link has been the movies, and since we’re talking about movie franchises, Star Trek isn’t in the same league with Star Wars, Bond, etc. My boyfriend’s family are Trekkies and one of the Star Trek compendiums they have says that it was seeing the success of Star Wars on the big screen is what prompted Paramount to resurrect their own “space property” for movies.
The franchise with the biggest impact has been Star Wars. No contest whatsoever. Bond is impressive for his enduring popularity, but not his influence. Star Wars, along with Jaws, basically created the blockbuster, and is responsible essentially for the entire summer movie season and every big-budget sci-fi film we watch.